How to record calls on Android and why installing voice call recording programs is a problem?

With the tightening of Google’s restrictions against the possibility of recording calls on Android phones, what method is there to record sound in this operating system?

One of the useful features that you can do using your phone’s dialer program is to record incoming calls. Call recording on Android is used to save conversations and important information or to prove what has been said.

In general, using the call recording feature on a mobile phone can be challenging. iPhone lacks this feature by default and adding this feature in iOS can be a pain.

On the other hand, although Android phones used to widely support call recording, Google has removed all audio recording plugins from its store in recent years. Because recording audio without consent is against the law in most states and countries.

How to record a call on Android

The easiest way to record a call on Android is the Google Dialer app, although some devices such as the Google Pixel do not support it. According to Google, you must have an Android phone running Android 9 or higher, an updated version of the Google Phone app, and specifically be located in a country where call recording is supported. In addition, your wireless carrier should also allow call recording in their service.

But if you don’t have a device that supports this app or you want to use another app, it will be a bit more complicated. Starting July 31, 2023, Google will introduce stricter new permission requirements for apps that access sensitive information (such as phone call audio).

Although until now, some third-party call recording apps could work around Google’s limitations by accessing the Accessibility API, that practice is changing.

In this way, only applications that can be used through a Google account or default system applications will have access to the possibility of recording a phone call. This means that any app on Google Play as of June 2023 that can record phone calls is either not updated or will be removed if updated.

The only way third-party apps will be able to record phone calls starting in July is with a rooted phone. With this method, the user can mark the program as a system software. The effectiveness of this solution is not guaranteed and rooting an Android phone can lead to problems in the phone’s operating system. However, if you’re serious about recording calls, this is the only informal way that’s likely to work.